FCE Review: World-Class Grooming by Cat Hill & Emma Ford

An Amazon gift card was among my family's generous Christmas gifts this year, and I had no trouble putting it to use. First item in the cart was Cat Hill and Emma Ford's book, World-Class Grooming for Horses, the English rider's complete guide to daily care and competition.

I had heard about the book through various internet sources (including Eventing Nation and Horse Nation) and was immediately interested. And not only because one of the authors and I share a name. lol

photography by Jessica Dailey
every image in this blog post is a copy of her work

My interest was further piqued when I read about 'clinics' the authors offered for grooms and riders and horse people of all walks to attend and learn first hand the tricks and tips of grooming to perfection. (Something I would *love* to do at one point or another!)

photography by Jessica Dailey 
book is spiral bound with a hard cover that should stand up to some abuse

I really like this book, guys. It's not gonna shatter your preconceptions about how the world works, or shake you to your very core regarding what it means to brush a horse. But I'd wager that most readers will walk away having learned an insight (or two, or twenty).

And my favorite thing about this book? Well, it really shouldn't surprise anybody. I love - LOVE - all the pictures. And there are many of them. No detail is too inconsequential a subject. Which pleases me excessively bc I not only enjoy looking at pictures of horses, I'm also a very visual learner. You can describe to me how the half pad should fit the saddle pad, sure, but show me the following picture and I'll immediately feel sheepish about my own poorly fitting getup.... haha?

photography by Jessica Dailey 

Along with the many, many photographs, the authors pair their clear instructions with descriptions of common mistakes (also complete with photographs). The book is organized into various parts and chapters (including general barn care, horse maintenance, tack how-to's, grooming, and competition prep) and everything follows the same straight-forward format.

photography by Jessica Dailey 

Interspersed through the various sets of directions are sidebars like the "pro tip" pictured above. These are useful because it's here that the authors offer more context on when different approaches might be appropriate for different situations. We all know how things aren't always black-and-white with horses - and the authors take time to share their experiences and anecdotes and make recommendations.

photography by Jessica Dailey 

Personally, I loved all the details about mane care, which they organized by discipline. Isabel's mane is.... not exactly my purview. Pretty sure her owner would be quite upset if I ever shortened it... So even tho I may dream of a shorter tidy mane that would look perfect with those adorable dutch dressage braids... well. It's just not in the cards.

photography by Jessica Dailey

Lucky me, tho - the authors also included a very nicely photographed section on running braids - from which I got a couple ideas for refining my techniques.

photography by Jessica Dailey 

They also wrote extensively about varying wrapping techniques and all different boots (for riding, turnout, shipping, stall rest, etc), definitely useful to have on hand as a reference. Plus the book provides guidance on how to adjust various pieces of tack and equipment - including a couple pieces I personally haven't used before.

photography by Jessica Dailey 

Another favorite aspect of the book are these 'barn gossip' pieces interspersed throughout, rich with name-dropping and funny (or 'oh shit') past experiences. Maybe you're not into that kinda thing.... but, well, I am. So I got a real kick out of reading them lol.

Essentially, this book is a great reference guide for any horse person. But particularly riders interested in turnout, especially for competitions. It's easy enough to read through cover-to-cover, tho I find myself more likely to use the nicely detailed Table of Contents to flip through to particular areas of interest.

I'm happy to have this book on my shelf for either occasional perusal or for specific look-ups. It would also make a lovely gift for an equestrian-minded friend.